First Spark
by Schizoid7Loner
Summary: She can feel his scarlet eyes burning at the back of her head, but when she looks at him, she cannot identify the furtive glance that sends odd shivers down her spine.
1. Melody

_A/N: Hello! I am a part of the minority that ships Kurapika with Melody (Or Senritsu as I have dubbed her in this chapter). The reasons are fairly straightforward: Melody is a kind and tempered young soul that has done a fairly good job of mitigating Kurapika's more calculating, and hotheaded tendencies both in and out of the manga. I have noticed Kurapika holds a special place in his heart for kind people (Piero, Gon etc.) and believe Kurapika could plausibly fall for Melody's serene and enduring caring nature._

 _Anyways, I have never submitted a story dedicated to this pairing before, but I simply had to write something after seeing the lack of KuraxSen fanfictions! This pairing needs much more love and have taken it upon myself to help bring more attention to them. I hope this chapter is alright; I found writing in Melody's point of view was a little challenging for me, as I tend to relate to characters like Kurapika a bit more (standoffish characters with an unintentional stoic energy), but I hope I did her justice! Let me know if you think I could improve Melody's characterization in anyway, and how you feel about this first chapter in the review section! I love constructive criticism._

 _Also just as an extra side note: I do not personally feel Melody is that much older than Kurapika (a year or two at the most). She strikes me as delightfully wise, but has a cute girlish quality to her I have always liked. Many fans justify their theory of her being older by stating that she only was subject to the Dark Sonata's curse because she and her friend were inebriated at the time, but I distinctly recall Leorio saying that in his hometown, it is legal to drink once you are sixteen. I believe laws pertaining to consent at which you may drink vary according to territory, and as such have decided that in this story, Melody will be 20, with Kurapika being 19. Therefore, Melody will have been 15, going on sixteen, when the curse was inflicted upon her. Needless to say, when this story picks up with the sexual element I am planning to bring into play, Melody will be pretty clueless on the subject._

 _Without further ado, enjoy!_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not in any way, shape, or form own HunterxHunter.**_

* * *

 **Chapter One: Melody**

"S _he warned him not to be deceived by appearances, for beauty is found within. If he could learn to love another, and earn her love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast for all time. As the years passed, he fell into despair and lost all hope. For who could ever learn to love a beast?"_

 _-Beauty and the Beast_

Short and stumpy fingers slipped across the ivory and black keys in a never ending crescendo of delicate raindrops. One would never expect such small and chubby fingers to be able to caress the keys with such care, and be able to persuade them into dancing in such an elaborate and mellifluous cascade of twinkling harmonics- reverberating crescendos- as the notes, like an iridescent waterfall crashed into the next set of elaborate minor chords. She lulls the blossoming pings of sound into a lullaby, and then like a fussy child, the chords within the grand instrument cry out as suddenly as thunder in a sharp sputtering of augmented sevenths and _fortes._

Somehow, the auburn haired musician charms her hands into playing the tittering notes that so echo nature's impromptu breeze. Pale fingers teeter along the glowing teeth of the piano, as if struggling to run off the white fangs of the beast, only to fall seemingly by accident onto the perfect keys. She never misses. Her fingers continue to dance across the cool, alabaster keys, as the pink shells of her nails punch into the coal sections of wood, blood fleeing her short stubby fingers in acknowledgment of the quaking sound that travels up her digits. The calcium of her fingers' armor disappears into the white rectangles, as if attempting to blend into the beautiful song; the ocean foam of rhythm.

And then, she carefully runs her pink tongue across her bottom lip, and begins to sing. Calm and smooth, her voice rolls into the chaotic masterpiece of auditory dance, and quells the excited beast into a soft purring of intricate arpeggios.

She rarely sings anymore. Not since the Dark Sonata, which tore her flesh asunder and trapped her into this small, and delicate form that is _so much closer to the ground._ It was almost as if the devil himself had spotted her head looking above others in her selfish pursuit of music -oh those were the days. When she could dance endlessly, and pine only after fleeting notes, and dear god _she was only a child-_ and deemed her too proud with her head held high. Too proud, too single-minded, to anxious to soar above the mundane pleasantries into the world of sounds. How fitting that she should be punished for her audacity, her dreamy and floating personality, by having her wings torn off so that she may spend the rest of her existence within the confines of a short, and clumsy body. One that could see nothing more than busy legs going everywhere, while she was forced to stay grounded.

' _Breath,_ ' Senritsu reminds herself, as she sucks in a stuttering breath that pulls the sob lodged in her throat down, under,under. At last, the tiny pianist regains control of her lungs, and allows a wisp of her voice to escape from her lips, until it builds in intensity, and she is shaking from the potency of her own song. The beautiful, almost angelic, harmony of her voice intertwines with the powerful chords of the piano. She bites back a smile at the melodious combination. At least her ability to produce music has not been deterred by the terrible Sonata.

The awakening sun rolls in through the barely parted maroon curtains of the room, and stretches across the girl's descending digits. Senritsu sighs, as she brings her reverberating voice down to a soft middle C, and slows her fingers' caresses to two interchanging notes. Her tired fingers slow until the grand beast has been placated, and the song is no more. She had spent the entire night playing the piano again. This will not bode well for her guard duties to Neon today….

She is preparing to slide off the bench onto her too small legs she has become accustomed to, and hopefully reach her bedroom before the others have awakened when….. she hears it: The soft clapping.

Senritsu whirls around suddenly at the unexpected audience, and flushes when she catches sight of blonde hair and mesmerized grey eyes.

Kurapika stares at her disbelievingly,a smile as rare as snow in Yorknew playing on his lips as he leans against the door of the room. "Senritsu….that was incredible...I did not know you could sing."

The young girl looks down at the ground, and bashfully shuffles her feet.

 _How embarrassing! He heard my unprofessional warbling? I didn't even really make an effort to stay on key at some points…._

"I don't do it as often anymore," she finally answers. "It's just something I do for myself every once in awhile….only if my heartbeat matches the music well enough."

"Anymore….?" The Kurta asks, voice dipping lower as he leaves the question hanging between them. Senritsu stiffens at the inquiry, before giving a sad smile as she looks down at her arms. She can hear the steel eyed boy's heartbeat falter, realizing when the last time she actually sang in public was.

"I see….please forgive me Senritsu, I have upset you."The Kurta only looks down briefly, a stoic action to most, but Senritsu can hear the self-loathing melody beginning to rise from his usually steady heartbeat, and she knows he is hiding regretful orbs beneath his golden bangs.

"N-no, no, not at all," she quickly reassures. "It was a fair question," she breathily laughs, "Truly...I am glad you enjoyed it."

Kurapika's eyes soften as he looks down at her, "It was the most beautiful song I have ever heard…"

And a warmth spreads to her chest at the sincerity in the young man's eyes. She thinks this is the first time in a long time anyone has said anything about her is beautiful.

"Do you normally wake up this early to play?" Kurapika asks running his hands over the black surface of the instrument, as he helps Senritsu slide the bench back in place.

Senritsu shuffles her feet in slight embarrassment as she avoids his gaze. His heartbeat pivots with understanding, as the 19 year old's arms freeze in his shuffling of music sheets.

"You never went to bed." It isn't a question.

Senritsu says nothing.

"Senritsu...you should not deprive your body of rest. Loss of sleep can have terrible repercussions on your health. Furthermore, we are hunters. This career is dangerous enough as it is without you losing your attentiveness." The boy frowns at her disapprovingly, worry swirling in the smoky grey of his eyes.

Senritsu allows the right corner of her lip to upturn coyly, and raises one ironic eyebrow. Kurapika blinks.

"As I recall, I told you the exact same thing two weeks ago when you were overworking yourself by taking over Nostrade-sama's investments..."

Indeed, even now Senritsu can see the dark rings around his eyes, like murals of the burdens that have been placed on his shoulders by their employer. Light Norstrade had fallen into a deep depression when he had discovered his daughter had been ridden of her seer abilities, and had unwittingly delegated the role of investment management to his head bodyguard after his mental breakdown. The shadows hung over his face, soft for a young man's, but the kindness and youth on Kurapika's face was leveled by his fierce and hardened eyes. She wondered if he himself had slept at all tonight.

Kurapika, aware of her tracing eyes, shifted his face to the side, "that...that is beside the point..."

 _Is his face reddening?_

Senritsu feels a small feeling of triumph blossom within her chest at the boy's acknowledgment of the irony in his scolding. Rarely do Senritsu's gibes administer the proper amount of teasing, serene as her voice has, unfortunately, always been. Kurapika on the other hand has always had a knack for understanding the cursed hunter's expressions.

"Really Kurapika, I am fine. I've gone without sleep before," The music hunter says, wagging a lecturing finger up at the taller blonde in a parody of a stubborn daughter. Kurapika's eyes widened in amusement at the girl's decidedly cute antics before letting an exaggerated sigh escape his lips, which were threatening to quirk up into a smile.

Senritsu takes a few steady steps forward. Their boss will be up any minute now really….it is shopping day after all. Neon is always up early on shopping days, a fact the hunter has had to get accustomed to-

"Oh!" Senritsu gasps, as her foot catches on the edge of a nearby stool. The young Kurta dashes to the young woman as quickly as only a hunter can, and manages to wrap an arm around her before she crashes to the ground.

"And you say you are fine? You are so tired you could not even see that knocked over chair in your path." And there is the boyish skip in his heart Senritsu has come to associate as the chain-user's feeling of triumph.

"I….well….." she trails off, and resists the urge to pout at her slip up.

"Ah-huh." Kurapika dead pans.

"Ok, so maybe I am a bit tired…" It is meant to come out as a grumble, but with her infuriatingly sweet voice, of course it comes out sounding like an admission of defeat. Kind and sweet Senritsu may be, but the thought of conceding defeat to anyone still stirs an ardent pinch to her pride.

She is wondering why he has kept his silence when her ears are alerted to the sudden spike in Kurapika's heartbeat. A puff of warm breath grazes the back of her neck, and an involuntary shiver races up her spine at the action.

 _What on earth….?_

"Wha-?" The conjurer's arms abruptly unwrap themselves from around her, and it is only then Senritsu is reminded that they had never separated from each other after she had tripped over the wayward stool. Stumbling forward without the support of strong, steady, arms, Senritsu pivots on her left heel to get a better look at the face of the boy with the sudden frenzied heatbeat.

Kurapika's cheeks burn bright in their rosiness as he refuses to raise his line of vision any higher than her feet. Senritsu stands before him, baffled and a little concerned at the complete 180 in behavior. A flustered Kurapika was a rare sight to behold indeed, and already Senritsu had witnessed it twice in one morning.

"Please forgive my uncouth actions...I….well," He blurts the words out, as if unsure of how to continue.

"I don't understand, what have you done that you feel apologetic for?" Senritsu asks, clearly bewildered.

He stares at her in shock, as if she had said something truly outrageous.

 _What's going on?_

"I-I touched you."

"Yes…. touching is necessary when catching someone, right?" She smiles. Was he ashamed of touching her without her permission? While the sentiment was appreciated, Senritsu had never really considered herself the type of woman to scold a man for simply _touching_ her. She trusted Kurapika, and knew he had no malintent. Besides, in her current state, who could possibly have that sort of intent?

"Senritsu, I...grabbed you inappropriately." Kurapika states through a hesitant mouth, the surprise at her apparent lack of knowledge becoming more obvious to her through Kurapika's stumbling heartbeat.

 _What's he talking about-_

Her eyes trace Kurapika's involuntary line of vision to her torso as realization dawns on her. The feeling of a long hand over the left side of her chest still feels warm.

 _Oh_

"I...didn't even notice….." it has been so long since she has even had to worry about men touching her, lusting after her. " ….Well quite honestly I don't really worry about this sort of thing anymore! It's alright Kurapika ,your heart, it is playing the rapid song of repent, but you don't need to worry. I am not upset." Senritsu says to the blonde-haired young man, doing her best to sound assuring.

Sure enough, his face softens from the twinge of anxiety it had previously worn. If not for the still lingering sound of displeasure in the rhythm of his heart, she would have never known the stoic boy was still discontent.

 _Was…..it something I said?_

"Either way….I apologize Senritsu….it was disrespectful on my part." He bows deeply, and Senritsu smiles at the youth, getting ready to depart from the music room.

"Senritsu. One final thing if I may…." Kurapika says, concern evident in his voice.

"Oh, yes of course?"

"Don't…...be careful of people touching you. There are a lot of scum that do not have good intentions."

He honestly thought someone would want to-?

"Forgive me if I sound as if I am lecturing or doubting your abilities….it's just that you are kind, and I-...I do not want anyone to take advantage." He finishes, head bowed, and heart beating oddly fast.

She almost laughs, but doesn't, almost cries, but doesn't. She is Senritsu. Undesirable, ugly, and strange Senritsu, with a foolish curiosity that has wronged her time, and time again.

And yet….here stands a young intelligent man, with a face that could have belonged to Alexander the Great asking someone like _her_ to beware of lecherous males that may desire something _more_ of her.

"I will do my best." She finally answers, voice unsteady with emotion she had long since learned to suppress.

 _Silly girl, is your vanity really so strong that you would tear up simply because someone said you had something worth defiling? You're a little fool, aren't you?_

When a sweet smile breaks across Kurapika's face at her sincere response, Senritsu forgets her self-loathing for the time being. She smiles back as she stares at the boy-with-too-many-burdens, and is glad when she hears his heart beat's melody return to a complacent and kind tune.

"I am glad. We had better get to the main room now. The others have no doubt already gathered to discuss today's agenda."

* * *

Senritsu makes her way back to her room, bewilderment at the sudden turn of events whirling in her mind. One moment she had been grabbing her favorite sun hat to make the trip with Neon to the mall, and the next-

Light Nostrade had called to tell her to get some rest for the day in order to recover from her absolutely _horrid_ _cold._ If the shock from actually being contacted by their employer directly had not been unusual enough to throw Senritsu for a loop, she might have let him know directly she was not actually sick. Of all the strange things to occur.

She smooths out the magenta sheets on her bedsprings, small palms pressing against the mattress as she laboriously maneuveres herself onto her bed. Really, if she is getting a chance to sleep in, she isn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth…

Back pressed against the mattress, she forces her eyelids to shut over amber eyes.

 _Aaaaannnnddd sleep._

She lays in her bed for several minutes. Restless. She clenches and unclenches her hands, moves onto her right shoulder to sleep on her side. Nope. She moves onto her front, sinking her face into the plush material of her lilac pillow. Nothing.

Several seconds pass before Senritsu decides she has finally had enough.

 _Okay, perhaps this situation is a little too serial to be comfortable with...kind of too good to be true, now isn't it?_

There was no way Neon could have ever noticed Senritsu being tired. Aside from Senritsu being a seasoned hunter, experienced in hiding her weaknesses, Neon…..was just not that bright. It was a rude thing to admit to herself, but Senritsu understood this to be true. Besides, it isn't like she would ever really care to report any illness pertaining to her bodyguards. Neon was far more interested in material possessions; it was plain to see she just did not have an abundance of empathy to spare..

 _So then who? The only one who knew I had been up all night was Kurapika. Did he…..say something to Norstrade-sama?_

Senritsu rolled over on her side once again, facing the wall and small drawer on the right of her bed. She shifted her legs against the soft, cool linens of her sheets, ruffling the material in the process.

Amber gaze peered behind drooping eyes as sleep threatened to overtake her after all, when she turned her head in just the right direction, and saw it.

There, sitting on her desk, was a neatly folded note, with plain, but careful writing. The note had been pinned below a medium-sized glass of water.

Senritsu shifted up quickly, kicking a pillow that had been sitting near her legs in her haste to sit up (...she may or may not have been a bit of an active sleeper), and curiously stretched her hand out to retrieve the paper. She unfolded the note, and began to read:

 _Senritsu,_

 _I have asked Basho to fill in for you today to attend to boss, and hope this will give you the opportunity for some much needed rest. I understand that you were fully prepared to proceed with today as usual, and am aware that you've no doubt had to deal with tiredness in the past, but, well, honestly I would feel much better if you got the chance to sleep well this once. I hope to see you well rested tomorrow._

 _-Kurapika._

Senritsu sighed, before smiling affectionately at the note. In reality, Kurapika was a very caring individual, though a stubborn one. There wasn't any other way to describe the note except for...sweet. There were times when Senritsu would tremble from the angry and foreboding symphony of fury thrumming from his heart strings, and other times she would look into his eyes only to see a gentleness and kindness radiating back at her. What an odd young man…

She briefly wondered at the slightly rumpled area of the paper, where it was clear something had been painstakingly erased, before her body halted her mind from thoughts, and fell into a deep sleep. She dreamt of a golden chain user, and how his gentle smile and brilliant eyes would shine upon her, and would be able to look past the sonata's damage into who she use to be. When she awoke hours later, she would refuse to admit as to why.

* * *

She slept soundly in the center of her small bed, hardly noticeable below the bunched up blanket and sheets. Only the soft rise and fall of her torso, along with her brown-magenta tinged hair sprawled out over the pillow was perceivable. Not even her face was visible from this angle; her hair had done an excellent job of covering the small music hunter's face.

Kurapika sighed softly as he stood in the doorway. He was not trying to spy, he swore, he was merely….checking up on his collegue. Not his friend, or someone he cares very deeply for….a colleague.

She had not even shifted when he had stepped inside the room. Her superior hearing nonexistent in the face of exhaustion. The truth was, Kurapika had long since started to wonder at Senritsu's lacking vitality, which he had correctly attributed to sleep loss. He had wondered at Senritsu's trouble with sleep….and now he was privy to why.

 _Honestly, staying up all night to play music…..and I know this cannot be the first time you have lost sleep over practicing…..You and I have both had to endure sleepless nights thanks to night guard duty...but why not just play during the day. Why not just use your free time to practice?_

He thought this to himself as he drew closer, and closer to the nightstand, where the note he had written earlier resided.

 _Why not just sing for me?_

So stunned is the young Kurta at the sudden, and audacious, question that his head is ridden of all thoughts until only the sound of her voice remains, playing over, _and over_ , _and over again_. Had he really just thought that? His eyes are drawn to the small nightstand- his note, and the curious erase marks marring the white parchment, bringing to the forefront of his memory just exactly what he had written earlier, before painstakingly removing such a childish request of the young music hunter.

 _Will you…. sing for me sometime?_

His cheeks burn scarlet at the thought that has been running through his head at the most inopportune times all day as he stares at the sleeping girl.

Her lovely voice still rings in his ears. He hopes to hear her again soon.

* * *

 _A/N: If you would like to hear what I personally feel Melody's voice would sound like, go to YouTube and type in "Sarah Lee- Michelle cover song". My compliments to this Youtuber! Her voice is very soothing, and pretty; everything I imagined Senritsu would sound like! Plus there is the added bonus of Michelle being my actual name, so I feel very warm and honored whenever I listen to this particular Beatles song~_

 _Let me know if you like this chapter down below, and many thanks for reading!_

 _Also….as you may have noticed, I tend to switch between Melody's english and japanese names frequently...truthfully I cannot decide which name I like best. For this first chapter I decided to use "Senritsu," but let me know in the comments which name you would prefer! Or should I just use both? Interchange between names every chapter? Just a thought._

 _Anyways, I am going to be ending this note here. I have not slept in two days thanks to finals…..I am having a hard time keeping my eyes open as I type. Hopefully this chapter did not suffer because of my sleep deprivation._

 _Oh, good lord…..sleep here I come. Insomnia, please fail me now._


	2. In the Library

**A/N: Um...yeah hi. Remember me? I want to start this note off by saying there is no really good reason I have avoided posting the second chapter of this story up until now. Sure there was school, work, and a multitude of other things I could list. I could even lie to you and claim I have not updated because my computer broke...or something along those lines. But my computer did not break down, and I have always struggled with managing school, work, and my personal life.**

 **To be blunt, I have not updated because I simply lost interest in writing.**

 **I suppose I could attribute it to writer's block but even that does not seem like an attiquate explaination. Events occurred in my life that completely zapped my will to write, and the slow climb it took to posting this chapter is my way of "getting back on the horse." So to speak.**

 **I wanted to take the time to thank the few who reviewed and Favorited/followed, and the very very few people that are still waiting for an update...bless you all, I do not think I would have stayed after a 6-month (has it already been six months?) hiatus. I have no words...sorry, truly I am.**

 **Special thanks to Azile-san, and EsmeGalad for your reviews and critique! EsmeGalad in particular: I appreciate your thoughts and have taken your comment on lessening the use of adjectives to heart. I can absolutely see how such a thing might impede the story, and have attempted to make this chapter less wordy~**

 **I appreciate your use of music theory to explain this to me as well haha, as a musician, it did help drive your point home. I have not idea if you are still reading, but I hope you are! I love helpful-criticism.**

 **Above all however, my gratitude goes to Hellodie-Bunnie:**

 **Your kind PM messages and motivating messages to "not give up" and continue the story are what actually inspired me to come back and update. I might have actually just filed this story under discontinued if it had not been for you. Thank you very much for your kind words and persistence! I need people like you in my life~!**

 **I cannot guarantee that this chapter is any good, I do not feel it is, but I owe you guys something and will do my best to stop being such a perfectionist with my work in order to be able to post. Lord knows I will never finish this story if I keep scrutinizing every word I write...**

 **Disclaimer: Don't own it, and with my lapses in updating my writing, I doubt I would be much better than the actual writer for HunterxHunter.**

* * *

Kurapika idly flipped through the tome that lay splayed across his lap. It isn't often that he gets the chance to read anymore. Not since he started playing bodyguard for Nostrade's daughter.

And what a taxing job it was….

The Kurta boy was running on his third cup of coffee as it was; he had spent the last couple of days attending to the phone non-stop, salvaging investments, and working with several other of Light Nostrade's employee's to preserve his family's stock. The man seemed virtually incapable of stomaching work ever since he lost his trump card: Neon's psychic abilities. Of course he could care less about Nostrade's wealth that in itself, but it was imperative that Light Nostrade's wealth remain intact so Kurapika could outbid any greedy snob hell-bent on purchasing the eyes of his people.

He discreetly rubbed the sleep from his eyes with the back of his palm; covering his rare show of weariness by flipping a page from a well-worn book he had plucked off the top shelf of the library. Friday mornings were one of the few times Kurapika was not required to work, and he took the time to hang out with his fellow hunters in the Mansion's rather large library even if he did not particularly feel up to the task. Really, he was the leader of the group, and had no obligation to show up every Friday (as had oddly become the unspoken agreement between the hunters).It also was not wise to indulge so freely in such tentative friendship - and in Senritsu's case...some other ties that bound them Kurapika could not readily identify- and his time would really be much better spent working to scour Nostrade's connections for any _sign_ of his clan's scarlet eyes…..yet..

 _You should take better care of yourself._

Senritsu's words repeated in his mind like a whisper from a breeze

, and not for the first time Kurapika wondered at the control such a small and meek girl had on his actions. It was ridiculous really. He was a Kurta for godsakes. Kurta did not bend their will in favor of pleasing short girls, who just happened to be hunters, and had a rather lovely voice…

Kurapika shook his head from side to side furiously, blond locks bobbing around his paling features. That was the third time this week the music hunter had inhabited his thoughts to distracting proportions.

"Aw Kurapika, come on, the one day you get the day off from running the company, along with setting up security, and you spend it _reading_?" Said Basho, briefly looking up from his laptop screen to deliver his disappointed glare dutifully.

Kurapika raised one perfectly "manicured" eyebrow (because he so obviously had so much time on his hands to go to a damn salon, Basho you _little_ _shit_ ) as he allowed his gaze to lift from the old crinkled pages of his book. How ironic coming from the haiku fanatic.

"I seem to recall finding _you_ reading a collection of Matsuo Basho's works yesterday."

"...Touche." Basho blinked, a hard furrow beginning to form on his face- evidence of his annoyance with Kurapika's obvious dodge. Still, the jibe towards Basho's fascination with his namesake did the trick, and the blacklist hunter's face reddens in embarrassment. Hm. Effective. Kurapika stores that information away for future reference.

However, just as suddenly as the embarrassment had appeared on his face, it was gone in the next second. Basho whipped his head up, with a mischievous glint in his eye, and smirked. "Sure kid, I spend a lot of time reading poetry, but not in my free time! There is a little thing called _talking to people_ we human beings like to do every once in awhile. Really loosens up the nerves, and seems to work wonders on the ladies."

Kurapika bristles at this. It always came down to..

"- funny how just talking to women gives you the best results…..right Kurapika?" The muscled hunter said, shamelessly eyeing the small brunette sitting with her back facing them at the far corner of the library. A book that looked much too large for her small frame was being balanced precariously on her too small right knee as she visibly strained from the weight of the …encyclopedia was it? Kurapika adored literature whenever he could spare the time to indulge himself in the world of knowledge and imaginative splendor, but Senritsu was more inclined towards the musical arts, and an encyclopedia seemed an odd starting point for a music specialist sporting an adorably mussed tangle of chestnut hair-

Kurapika's eyes widened as he quickly shifted his attention away from the music hunter. Attempting a nonchalant approach, the Kurta slyly peeked one grey eye up towards the would-be poet next to him, gauging for a reaction of any kind..

… _..Maybe Basho had not seen._

Of course, because lady luck is a hapless bitch (and oh, you can bet Mama Kurta would not approve of her boy's sass towards celestial deities), and Kurapika is the poster child for unlucky boys everywhere, the muscled prick's gaze was squarely pinned on him. Basho was grinning ear to ear at the exchange he had witnessed. There was no doubt in Kurapika's mind he would be hearing about being caught gazing _oh so lovingly_ at the musical Hunter like the "love-sick" teen he was.

"Well would you look at that! Leader's got some interest in the fairer sex after all! I was starting to wonder….how sweet, Leader-boy was staring _oh so lovingly_ (Kurapika freakin' knew it) at a girl. _Le gasp_ , and she is pretty much your age too! Well, maybe a year or so ahead, but I'm sure a cougar is no challenge for dear Kurapika~" said Basho, his brows wiggling suggestively.

Kurapika froze at the implication.

His thoughts had never escalated that far….

"Hahaha, don't look so worried leader, I was just teasing you, she's not really your type, eh?" Basho said after a lapse of time looking at Kurapika flounder (well, as much as the stoic Kurta boy _could_ flounder). His voice was self-assured, honest sounding, as if he had just stated that he color grey was the most beautiful color, only to laugh and state _of course that was a lie,_ and grey isn't really a color anyway. Not his type? Not his _type_? He isn't sure why, but he feels inexplicably offended at Basho's matter-a-fact tone. The way he stated Kurapika could never possibly be attracted to Senritsu. It….it hurt. Why did it hurt?

Kurapika frowns as he feels an odd acidic feeling begin to grow in his belly, and spread throughout his chest. As if _he_ was the one that had been slighted. And in a way he had, he realizes, as his fingers finally clench and unclench themselves, resurrecting the feeling back into the tiny limbs that had fallen limp on the large book cradled in his lap. Basho had implied Senritsu's unattractiveness as if it were an unequivocal fact .Her value as a woman somehow downgraded in accordance with her lack of the fundamental basis unspokenly demanded of all women. Beauty.

' _Melody is my…... colleague'._ He tried to rationalize. ' _Of course that's why I am…..'_ But, what was this feeling?

"Hey, are you alright? Your expression just went a bit cold…" Basho said, playful grin slipping into a straight, blank, line. Like a piece of string briefly used as a plaything by a small child only to be dropped to the floor, limp and abandoned, after having lost interest in the game.

"I'm fine, why wouldn't I be." Kurapika stated promptly. Years of living on his own had given him his greatest teacher. Loneliness. And from this master, he had learned how to keep people away, how to mask his emotions, and above all else loneliness had taught him to lie reflexively.

"If you say so. You seem kinda mad though."Basho muttered under his breath, brow furrowed in curiosity as he stood up and made his way towards a shelf on the opposite wall. Just as suddenly as those words left Basho's mouth, Kurapika made a mad grab at his right wrist, and dug his nails into his arm to get a semblance of self-control back..to stop himself from hotly responding " _NO I'm not!"_

The sudden action his body had just performed, and the unwanted thought that had materialized in his mind, startled him with the aggressiveness of it.. His body had acted on its own, without his explicit command to do so, and it had been a long time since Kurapika Kurta had not been completely in control of his own actions.

' _Angry? Am I angry?'_ He thought to himself, now consciously forcing himself to swallow down the warm, ardent, bubbling emotion back into himself. ' _Use your head,'_ he reminded himself, locking his hysterical heart back within himself., ' _I_ am _angry. Is that what this is? But_

… _...this feels different somehow…"_ Indeed, anger was not a foreign feeling to Kurapika. He waded through the torrent emotion each and everyday, not a word, but a sound, forever crackling within his very soul. The cold, controlled lightning strikes carefully conducted into a purpose: Vengeance. Purposeful anger, crippling hurt like a raging cancer that bullied your internal organs into submission and yet had the audacity to demand tears and heartache as tribute for it's unwanted performance.

He knew indignance like an abusive parent forever peering over your shoulder, incessantly grinding their palm into a gouged out wound in your back, the only present they were ever able to bequeath you. He thought he knew anger completely, but this twinge of rage was puzzling. There was a sliver of sadness in it that lashed out and wounded him…..was it compassion? No...no, that wasn't a foreign emotion….what could it be.

 _Heartache_.

He blinked. His lip twitched in response, and his brow furrowed in discernibly beneath his long bangs, and….he blinked. He reviewed the definition in his mind, and ran the word through his mental servers, processing, processing, processing…...as if he were a machine. The word was present in his mind, but the full analysis and understanding of the word had been lost in translation. It was almost as if his subconscious was trying to help him understand, but was too far away for Kurapika to properly hear.

He drops his conversation with Basho and retreats into himself once more. Had he kept his eyes trained on the Haiku warrior, he would have noticed the scheming grin etched across his face.

_,

Kurapika flips another page from the textbook laying in his lap. He did what he could to keep his mind occupied with the book on the Ming Dynasty he was currently reading rather than the girl sitting a few feet away.

Yawning, Kurapika turns his head to the small clock hanging on the wall on the east side of the room. 11:45 am. He still had the rest of the day ahead of him Kurapika thought to himself…..that was a relief. He was not quite ready to end the day and return to work. Even Avenger Kurta-boys needed breaks from paperwork every once in awhile

.

A slow steady stream of notes flows through the room and Kurapika's head snaps at the melodious sound. His eyes flit towards the short musical hunter perched upon a bench a few paces away from Kurapika and Basho, and when his black-contact clad eyes connect with her amber..he feels odd.

She smiles cutely. Kurapika forgets how to breath.

Basho gives a hearty laugh, "alright Sen! It's about time we got some noise to drown out the silence!" Kurapika can't help but agree. To be honest the silence was getting unnerving…mostly because of the awkward confrontation Basho and he had just left hanging in the air…

"The room had such a lovely rhythm going…..and no one seemed to be offering any words up to play with the beat. I-I thought a nice, soft, tune might match the ambiance well…" Senritsu smiles sweetly as her voice trailed off, face reddening a bit at her comment. She had just pointed out the awkwardness of the everyone's lack of conversation after all.

The blonde blinked and scrutinized his own actions. Other than his conversation with Basho, Kurapika had not been uncomfortable with the silence. But Senritsu's reaction was to be expected; she was a woman of music and sounds after all, even speech sounded like music to her ears, so a stretch of two hours without any noise other that the beats of their hearts….it must have been driving her mad. A drum line with no melody? How torturous. Particularly considering her enhanced hearing.

Kurapika laughs out loud, "Sen if you were so uncomfortable you could have said something sooner, I would not have minded talking to you for awhile."

"Well…yes of course." she laughs knowing that Kurapika must have understood her sudden outburst. "I did rather think a song would be a good idea for the tone though…..just because it's early morning and we all still seem to be waking up" She sing-songed, eyes crinkling with the secret smile that formed on her face. Kurapika blushed. So she _had_ heard his discreet yawning.

Basho eyed the pair curiously, paying particular attention to the blonde hunter as nonchalantly as he could. It would not do to arouse dear leader's suspicions after all.

Senritsu raised the small penny whistle to her lips once more, and adopted a more lively tune this time around. The notes seemed to jump and dance throughout the room, and the eyes of both males widened at the song; they had not heard this one before.

Senritsu jumped down from her place on the bench, somehow avoiding affecting her playing, and steadily made her way to her fellow hunters. Her feet stepped in time with the beat, and if Kurapika did not know any better, he would say she was dancing. He sat mesmerized at the fluid song, and began to feel a sense of unbridled joy surge through him and the room was transformed…..he had no doubt in his mind this was Senritsu's Nen bleeding through the music.

He watched as the young woman's every move fell in sync with the tune she had set. How it was possible to instigate order and beauty so quickly through something as chaotic as _music_ he would never know.

After a time, Senritsu's playing came to an end, and both males sat in their seats, unaware of the penny whistles final note. It had blended back into the silence so perfectly, even the quite seemed like a symphony of high noise now. Blinking rapidly, both men clapped appreciatively, and Senritsu laughed lightly, before giving a deep bow.

"Thank you Thank you~" she teased, her small bit of hair curtaining her peripheral vision.

"I'd never heard that one! It was a cool fast-sounding one…what's it called?" Basho questioned, vestiges of the uncontrollable grin Senritsu's song had caused had Basho deliberately clamping his hand over his lips in an attempt to reign in the nen-induced joy.

"It's name is Morrison's…an old Irish tune I like to play every once in awhile. It inspires happiness after all." Senritsu said, idly twirling a strand of auburn hair.

" _Leader_ definitely deserves some joy after working so hard for all of us, and how better to repay him than to give him some kind of emotional break….with music" Senritsu said, eyes crinkling at the teasing lilt she took on when saying "leader." Kurapika fought down the blush that reddened his cheeks, and Basho chuckled.

Kurapika knows she is attempting to repay him for letting her sleep in a few night's ago. He wants to tell her she doesn't owe him anything, wants to tell her he is just glad she looks well-rested. He knows all this, and yet feels the urge to ask something else of Senritsu.

Maybe it was the music's effect,, but Kurapika felt a sudden joy that encouraged him to say what he did next.

"I really liked this tune…..however if it was for my benefit, and you would really like to pay me back in some way….I think I might enjoy the song more if you sang it…" Kurapika trailed of challengingly, adopting a teasing tone of his own

He counts Senritsu's raging blush as a victory.

"Ohoho~ Leader sure is sneaky~" Basho says, a genuine grin curling the ends of his lips this time.

He isn't sure why he asked this of Senritsu. He has the inexplicable feeling that what he witnessed in the music room a few nights ago had been private, sacred even…...but he still remembers that way she had looked: Forlorn, jaded, and much much more tired than someone of her mere twenty years ought to.

 _Will you…...sing for me sometime?_

Even now, the thought he had so painstakingly erased from the note he had written Senritsu refuses to leave him alone. He can't help it. The sweet lul of her voice has been forever engraved in his mind, and he can't stop himself from asking for her voice once more.

"I…...OK" Senritsu finally says, a hesitant yet…somewhat pleased look enveloping her face.

When she parts her lips and lets the first tune spill forth, Kurapika knows he made the right choice.

* * *

It isn't until much later that it occurs to him that Senritsu's sudden playing of the penny whistle had less to do with her discomfort with silence, and more to do with her sensing the tension growing between himself and Basho.

This too he stores away for future reference.

* * *

 **A/N: Thoughts? I differentiated Kura and Sen's 's by making Kurapika straightforward, stark, and a bit of a smart-ass (in short _that guy_ ). He is a formal guy, but have you _seen_ that boy? He is so unbelievably sassy I swear...  
**

 **Anyone want to second the head-cannon that Basho is a closet match-maker and hell bent on teasing Kurapika's "unmanly" physique? At least in comoparison to the bulky mess that stallion is? No? Just me?**

 **R & R if you feel so inclined, ,they inspire me to update faster truly~**


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